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Black Aliss 13,529

Black Aliss 13,529

That's a very starch- and meat-heavy diet. No wonder Steve has that potbelly! I'm also a bit baffled by why sometimes burgers are served with buns and sometimes they are not.

To be fair, some of those meals would not be out of place at my dinner table. In the winter. And, unless it was a one-dish meal, like soup, there'd always be a couple of vegetable sides, except when the vegetables were the main attraction. I think we eat vegan or vegetarian at least half the time.

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HoneyBunny 3,115

HoneyBunny 3,115

Their dietary choices just seem odd to me, as if they're eating the kind of food that young teenagers would want. I never thought my husband and I ate especially healthily, but compared to the Maxwells we sure do. And more complex meals, too (though not difficult), like some Indian and Greek and Mediterranean dishes. And lots of salad (I refuse to say the words 'Big Salad').

As for meal planning...my parents would discuss at dinner each night what they wanted to have the following night (so it could be thawed out) and I thought that was insane. Teri's weeks of menus are simply depressing. What about the hot summer days when you just want to eat watermelon or fresh cherries on the deck and Spit the seeds, or freshly picked tomatoes in a caprese salad? To have to sit down to a stew when it's 102 outside doesn't appeal to me at all.

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mango_fandango 23,376

mango_fandango 23,376

Most of the Maxwells apart from Steve seem pretty slim, but then they work out a fair bit, hike a lot, and the aunties in particular run around and play with the grandchildren.

From a budgeting point of view I can see the benefits of meal planning ie only buying what you need, particularly if you have young children. But this is the Maxwells, and this is with grown adults in the house. By this age in a normal family they would've all moved out eg to college or married with their own families or just struck out on their own because that's what most adults do (or at least want). And it's just another method of control.

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CyborgKin 7,475

CyborgKin 7,475

Eh, I'm over 30 and I basically eat whatever get put in front of me for dinner. Most of it I like, and a few things I complain about. That reminds me, tonight is my night to help cook. Maybe I'll check the schedule to see what I'm doing. Or wait and find out at the time Nah might as well look... oh, it's fish That's something I make sure is known I dislike but can't get away from. Oh well, I don't have to taste it for very long.

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LadyPriss 498

LadyPriss 498

I really need to try some sort of meal planning when I get back from working overseas in a few days. My house caught fire a few months back (everyone's ok and we have insurance) but we'll be living in a 5th wheel while the house is repaired. With a small-ish fridge/freezer, and a need to actually accomplish other fire related stuff, I can't see myself wasting a tonne of time shopping every two days. I don't want to be using the stove inside the trailer because I'm not a fan of cooking with gas in a small space (that and it's summer) so I'll be relying heavily on my BBQ (with side burner) and slow cooker.

Thank heavens for the internet. With my cookbooks all tossed in the dumpster I'll be searching for recipes soon I reckon.

Living like a Rodrigues and planning like a Maxwell. At least we have water/sewer hooked up so I can avoid a Naugler type situation.

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SolomonFundy 5,980

SolomonFundy 5,980

The SO and I do meal planning. We have since embarking on a Whole30 for the first time in late 2015, and have stuck with the meal planning since it has saved us so much time, money, and mental energy. We both love to cook, but deciding what to have for dinner based upon whatever we discover in the fridge, while hungry, after working all day? No thanks. Meal planning has been great for us, but like all things in life, I can see how it wouldn't appeal to some.

Teri and Steve's food schedule is a wonderfully concise expression of their entire familial existence: bland offerings that lack in true substance, recycled endlessly, and served without options.

However, I notice there are no garden salads on the menu. The pizza cutter must be broken.

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nastyhobbitses 57,109

nastyhobbitses 57,109

I do meal planning; I'm out of the apartment at least 12 hours a day and my job doesn't really do lunch breaks -- you generally eat at your desk and work while you eat -- so for me, meal planning is really convenient and takes out a lot of the guess work, and keeps me from buying unhealthy meals on Seamless. I buy a big pack of chicken breasts or thighs, make up a marinade (usually Italian or Middle Eastern-inspired, but I've also done Indian and Mexican-inspired marinades), chop up some veggies, throw all of it on a sheet pan, and boom, my meals for the week are done. If I want a little variety, I make roasted chickpeas or a chili or a dal: just stuff that I can make in bulk and spoon into smaller Tupperwares for lunch/dinner during the week.

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Flossie 9,878

Flossie 9,878

Lori Alexander reference. She lives on her 'big salads'. Her refusal to cook very often caused her husband to come home at night and make his own dinner. She has bragged about some raisins being used as an excuse for her and her husband to tag team on a four hour beating session for one of her kids, who was just a toddler at the time. Also, her obsession with weight has given both of her adult daughters food issues, and one of her sons is so controlling he puts his infant daughter on a blanket at meal time so he and his wife can eat undisturbed. The baby is 'corrected' if she leaves the blanket or cries to be fed. After dinner, the baby is then fed, and more correction is applied if she doesn't eat the way he likes.

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Coconutwater 2,714

Coconutwater 2,714

I get meal planning when children are little or even teenagers to have enough left over if there's an event or they go out, but with everyone being grown there's no need for all that. My parents cook what they are in the mood for (there has always been a meal on the table, but I've never seen a schedule) and the one 19 year old who is in college and moved back home to save money either eats with them or doesn't. If I go to visit and they tell me what their making and I don't like it then I know to eat beforehand. Like they've said "we have raised all of you, this is our time" Teri me Steve will always be in that having small children home mindset...

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Eternalbluepearl 11,977

Eternalbluepearl 11,977

She has bragged about some raisins being used as an excuse for her and her husband to tag team on a four hour beating session for one of her kids, who was just a toddler at the time. Also, her obsession with weight has given both of her adult daughters food issues, and one of her sons is so controlling he puts his infant daughter on a blanket at meal time so he and his wife can eat undisturbed. The baby is 'corrected' if she leaves the blanket or cries to be fed. After dinner, the baby is then fed, and more correction is applied if she doesn't eat the way he likes.

All of this is some of the most disturbing stuff I've heard. Holy shit. I haven't read about Lori Alexander very much.

nausicaa 32,056

There are only 2 of us and we meal plan and prep. Eating "what I'm in the mood for" leads to overspending and over eating. Not to mention that we don't have time to cook a full meal every day.

Me too. I live alone and the weeks I meal plan are the only weeks I don't overspend and still eat well. I can still eat healthy while eating out but those weeks I WAAAY overspend on my budget. (I have a slight Chopt addiction right now...)

I wish I could meal plan more consistently actually. But God, food prep can just take up so much of my life. And I am not someone who finds any pleasure in cooking. It's just a chore for me.

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bertnee 3,177

bertnee 3,177

Currently having an awkward visit with my out-of-town extended family ("extended" as I am married and can no longer claim "immediate family"). Why has no one ever taught my extended family how to be great conversationalists????

Re: Meal plans

There's only 2 of us but I do one as I'm trying to lose weight and also save money! I usually pick 3 dinner recipes for the week and then we eat leftovers on the opposite days or go out sometimes. I also make whichever of the 3 recipes sounds best on the cooking day, or based on what ingredients will expire faster. And my world doesn't fall apart if we do something off-plan or go to a restaurant instead. I like meal planning and I think it would probably be helpful for most people (esp if you have kids!) but I don't think I'm a genius or a master homemaker for spending 20 minutes a week looking up recipes that sound good and don't cost a million dollars/calories. AND unlike the Maxwells, I manage to do it while still working FULL-TIME! And going places! And doing things!

Sloppy joes on baked potatoes sounds pretty good, I made them last week using a low-carb wrap, a slice of pepperjack and then pressed in the panini maker. But I served them with spicy pickles, that might be too much for the Maxwells.

Also: The Betters Homes and Gardens New Cookbook is my favorite. Most are pretty easy to make for a novice cook but a step above dump-several-cans-into-pot-and-stir recipes. And I like how it has "mix and match" recipes -- like the recipe will list "2 cups VEGETABLES, 1 pound MEAT, 2 tablespoons SPICE, etc" and then have columns listing different vegetables/meats/spices that would work and you pick out what you have on hand or if you're going for a certain flavor/style.

We saw a woman on the corner of a busy intersection this evening with a brown cardboard sign that said "Please Repent" on one side and "Jesus Christ Saves" on the other. We're trying to figure out what makes you to decide to spend Friday evening waving a sloppy Jesus sign at an intersection. We've got nothing.

42 hours to go until I meet Kiki for the second (which feels like first) time. Got some small toys ready for her (we don't want her to use big sisters toys) and we are also kinda ready for guests. My Mum made sure to also clean the hidden spots under our bench in the kitchen. Kiki fits under there and we don't want her to come out covered in dust and dog hair. 😅 Our breeder wrote us that the "gang" enjoys the warm weather and they are in hunting mode, catching may beetles. Wish us luck and that there is a good connection between her and me so that I can make the final decision.

It never rains, but it pours. Went to the orthopedic doc today about my ankle and got the lovely news that I have some seriously torn ligaments...like maybe surgical repair torn. This is some serious bullshit.

My young neighbor died unexpectedly last fall, and his family has recently put his house up for sale. They are trying to sell the house themselves, but it's not listed on any of the sites that people trying to sell their homes themselves generally use, so....
I told Mr. Cartmann99 to pass the word along to coworkers he knows are looking for houses, as it would be nice to have someone that he could catch a ride to campus with when our car is in the shop and vice versa.